Bug 114571

Summary: Anaconda throws exception while kickstart installation via PXE
Product: [Retired] Red Hat Linux Reporter: Sven Paas <sven.paas>
Component: anacondaAssignee: Jeremy Katz <katzj>
Status: CLOSED NOTABUG QA Contact: Mike McLean <mikem>
Severity: medium Docs Contact:
Priority: medium    
Version: 9   
Target Milestone: ---   
Target Release: ---   
Hardware: i686   
OS: Linux   
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Fixed In Version: Doc Type: Bug Fix
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Clone Of: Environment:
Last Closed: 2004-01-30 16:10:44 UTC Type: ---
Regression: --- Mount Type: ---
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oVirt Team: --- RHEL 7.3 requirements from Atomic Host:
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anacdump.txt none

Description Sven Paas 2004-01-29 17:22:59 UTC
Description of problem:

We install our DELL2650 servers using kickstart
via PXE. The installation kernel booted via PXE from 
network is images/pxeboot/vmlinuz with 
images/pxeboot/initrd.img from the original RH9 
linux CD #1. 

The network kernel boot works fine, until anaconda comes
into place throwing an exception. 

(I can post the full anacdump.txt). 

Note that this immediately happens after anaconda
notes that there are not any partitions on the 
hard disk where Linux is going to be installed. 

Version-Release number of selected component (if applicable):

Red Hat Linux 9. 

How reproducible:

Always. 

Steps to Reproduce:
1. Install RH9 via kickstart and network boot (PXE).
2. Wait until anaconda tries to touch the hard disk.  
  
Actual results:
Anaconda throws an exception. 

Expected results:
Anaconda should install the system. 

Additional info:
When booting from original RH9 CD instead of
booting the kernel via PXE, we have no problem
installing the system via kickstart completely
using the same kickstart file.

Comment 1 Sven Paas 2004-01-29 17:25:44 UTC
I'm sorry, the platform is of course i686. 

Comment 2 Jeremy Katz 2004-01-29 18:08:05 UTC
Please attach the actual dump, I have no data to work from without it.

Comment 3 Sven Paas 2004-01-30 07:57:01 UTC
Created attachment 97360 [details]
anacdump.txt

This anaconda's dump to diskette after throwing the exception.

Comment 4 Sven Paas 2004-01-30 13:18:06 UTC
Update: 

I found the part of the kickstart file that caused the
exception: 

clearpart --all --drives=hda

This is obviously wrong, since there is no hda drive
on a DELL 2650, but an sda drive. 

But anaconda shouldn't throw an exception when the
kickstart file tries do touch a hard disk that 
doesnot exist. So it is IMHO still an error that 
should be fixed. 


Comment 5 Jeremy Katz 2004-01-30 16:10:44 UTC
Improving kickstart's error handling is an RFE somewhere.  Right now,
referencing drives that don't exist is a definite "don't do that"
thing.  The exceptions are better now than they used to be although
distilling them and presenting them in a nice useful form to the user
is still to occur.